one of the reasons for no small appliances is that some people will bring in a $45 portable 1500W electric space heater and put it under their desk, because they feel cold, and they have totally no idea of the problems and difference that adding a 1500W resistive electric load (vs like a 25W desk lamp) to the shared 15/20A 120VAC circuits in a cubicle farm can cause. those things are absolute fire hazards when used in the wrong environment.
My employer sent a reminder of the guidelines on this topic recently.
Specific examples of prohibited items in office spaces include:
- Hotplates
- Hair dryers
- Cooking devices using an open flame, including propane, butane or wood.
- Car batteries and chargers.
There’s then a list of about 30 items that require a permit.
We were joking about the oddly specific nature of the items. I’m assuming some lunatic at one time had a camp chef or Weber Q in his cube cooking up some lunch.
Bonus points if the person using the heater sits right next to the thermostat, causing the thermostat to think that the ambient air temp needs to be even lower..
